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Neverwinter Nights for Linux
Marshall writes "Today I received an email from Tux Games that I never thought I'd get: confirmation that they were shipping me Neverwinter Nights complete with Linux installer! I didn't believe my eyes, so I checked out bioware's web page, and it was confirmed, the linux client is complete. Also check tuxgames.com which states that they are completing the installer and plan to ship games on Monday, 23 June."
This news forces me to reconsider how appropriate I believe the title Neverwinter Nights is.
Perhaps Eventuallywinter Nights, Finallywinter Nights, or Tookadamnlongtimewinter Nights.
Sharpies don't just sniff themselves.
I wouldn't call a client that unlike the Windows version lacks both movie playback and a toolset "complete".
ppffttt
Certainly not what we were led to belive we were getting when Bioware first announced a client.
Both the Mac and Windows versions get movie playback, what do we get? Nada.
Not only that the jackballs at Infogrames/Atari jacked up the the Linux installer included on the Shadows of Undrentide expansion disc by saving all the shell scripts using DOS line endings.
...and to think I almost went in to work today.
This made my year. How sad is that?
I've been playing it with no problems. I think the likely cause of the excessively long delay to release is due to some good QA people at Bioware.
So far everything in the game has worked flawlessly. With this and ut2003 native linux clients, Tux finally can be a gamer.
I recommend downloading Gentoo's Unreal Tournament bootable CD if you want to demo native Linux gaming for some non-believers... Sorry, can't find a direct link... It's in their livecd folder...
Also I recommend transgaming for Windows games on Linux. Warcraft 3, Ghost Recon, Max Payne to name a few games that run under Winex3...
I hope more game development companies want my money, cuz from now on the only way their getting it is if the game has a native Linux client... Unless it's a ps2 game of course..
My Linux Command of the Day site : LCOD
Why would you need to buy another copy? The game assets are here (1.13GB). All you need is a CD Key and some FileShack patience (which would be cheaper than buying the game again).
Schnapple
The expansion pack Shadows of Urdentide even ships with a Linux installer on the CD
Almost...
It seems that the CD mastering tool BioWare/Atari used converted all the text files - that includes shell scripts, mind - to Windows-style text, and when you try to run the installer /bin/sh chokes on all the ^M characters.
Happily, there is a workaround. See HERE
Note to all single-player-campaign people - pick up the SoU expansion pack and install it concurrently with NWN. The expansion pack adds many more spells, classes, feats etc and they work with the original game, plus some minor bugs are fixed in the process (the SoU expansion patches the original game content too)
Huh, I submitted this as a story this AM, and it was rejected in favour of this. Go figure.
DG
Want to learn about race cars? Read my Book
Or just the client. I'd be happy with either, but I'd obviously prefer the toolset as well. This may revitalize my gaming, since it's a pain to switch from Linux to Windows just to play a game (yeah I'm lazy). Of course I could buy a new machine...
Hell froze over?!?! Sweet!! Duke Nukem Forever must be right around the corner!
The NWN community has been getting broader and more interesting, perhaps mainly due to the VAST number of third-party modules out there, and the new module content that Bioware puts out as well. Think of it as another manifestation of the miracle of Open Source; a lot of things that were added to the latest NWN expansion pack actually came from the community and were added in.
From your post, it's obvious to me that you know nothing about this, and the only reason I'm replying is because it pains me to see such an uninformed post sitting at +5.
pb Reply or e-mail; don't vaguely moderate.
Off topic, but it would be nice if someone that has the completed client resource files create a bittorrent link and allow for quicker distribution than to wait in line in fileshack. Just a thought...
The Win32 version has requirements: ...
450 MHz CPU
128 MB RAM (win2k/XP), 96MB (Win9x)
1.2 GB HDD (Minimum Install + OS etc.)
16 MB OpenGL 1.2 GFX
Note that NWN has had problems w/ ATI cards all from the start. I'd suggest using a GeForce 2 MX card and a 1 GHz CPU for fair performance.
Damn, forgot this in the parent post. SlashDot needs an "edit" feature...
The Linux game client binary on the SoU expansion CD is V1.30, where the game client on their website is V1.29. So the SoU version is NEWER than this one.
I can confirm that the "sticky mouse" problem that showed up on some resolutions is fixed with V1.30. I actually finished the game at 800X600 with 1.29B5. I tried running at 1024X768 with B5, and got the "sticky mouse". Tried it again with 1.30 after I installed SoU, and it worked - although I seem to have hit the bandwidth limits of a PCI-based GeForce MX400, 'cause it was a little slow.
At 800X600, Athlon 2100+, RH8, latest NVidia drivers, 32Mb textures, game was nice and snappy.
I expect that with a more modern, AGP-based card, the game would scale better to the higher resolutions.
I didn't get very deep into the SoU single-player campaign last night, but the little bit I did shows that it is MUCH improved from the original. The BioWare module people are getting very good. Lots of nice little touches. This is a game worth picking up.
DG
Want to learn about race cars? Read my Book
With the Linux and Mac versions being so late, there's probably not nearly as many people still playing it now as there were, say, a year ago.
Good news! You're wrong.
The community is still hella strong -- scope out www.neverwinterconnections.com for all your multiplayer matching needs. Nobody plays the official campiagn; it's always user mods, and usually ones the DM himself whipped up. You won't have to worry about people having played through the content already and then left the community.
You can download hundreds of good mods (amoung thousands of average ones) at nwvault.ign.com. Aside from movie playback, which is rarely used and almost always optional, you'll be able to play the same single player or multiplayer mods windows users have been enjoying.
Trust me, it's not too late to jump into NWN. If anything, you have the advantage of not being around during the early days when mods were really clumsy and new. Now you have multiple polished masterpieces to pick from and some thriving match services./p
Both linux gamers will enjoy this tremendously! ;-)
Quidquid latine dictum sit, altum viditur
2) Are you running in 16 or 24bpp.
There were problems with 24bpp on my radeon 8500le until beta 3 or 4. Now it runs great.. as long as I turn off hardware TCL. The T and C are fine, but the Lighting part in XFree86 DRI is messed up.
There are two kinds of people: 1) those that need closure
If that's the case, then there are a bunch of /. guys out there right now going to collect on those dates they were promised.
Sure, this version lacks some features, which is grotty. Sure, it's horribly late, which will massively reduce interest in it. Sure, it's very unlikely you'll see this version hitting the stores (which is where you need the Linux versions!) but it's better than nothing. Just.
Am I over-dramatizing all this? Can games really make that big of a difference? Well, yes, they can. To use a term I detest, but it's all-too-accurate, it's all about mindshare. Every time someone sees a Linux title on the shelf, every time someone sees Linux placed alongside the mainstream choices, Linux gains mindshare. People consider it as a real option. Something they can actually use.
At the moment, it's generally seen as a "fairy-tale" OS - something that sounds all magical and unreal. That's because it gets mentioned a little but sightings are still rare. It becomes the computer version of Bigfoot.
Now, you start seeing stores stocking Linux software - not just the distributions, but actual applications, games, utilities, etc - then you will see a gradual dawning on people that Linux actually does exist, and actually does something.
The games market is key, though. Companies are loath to change what they use, but students are less likely to care, so long as it's cheap, simple, and covers the same titles as Windows. Younger kids certainly won't care, so long as they can make things go splat.
To get to these people, you need to get titles in the stores. Current titles. Hot-selling titles. Stuff that people will gravitate towards, not just glance at. The Linux port of NWN is not that, by a long way, and I doubt I'll see it stocked on the shelves anywhere soon.
But, it is a step in the right direction. It has got the company aware of what it takes to write Linux code, and it now has their graphics engine ported. Both of those are essential ingredients in the brew that'll get the company releasing titles for both Linux and Windows at the same time. However, they are just two ingredients. It's got to be clear to these people how to write Linux code well, how to make money from it, and how to promote it.
We're not seeing any of those, here. We've not really seen any of them from any other porting effort. Without those, companies won't bother.
Here's the kicker, though. Once teens & students switch to Linux in a serious way, the more visible Linux will become to everyone. The more visible Linux is, the more mindshare it'll grab. The more mindshare, the more it'll be used.
Nobody wants a system they can't use, but equally nobody wants to be seen as an ignorant has-been. There is a "critical mass" of people which, if you can reach it, the popularity will massively explode. Below that point, usage will stabilize and eventually fizzle out. The reason people use Microsoft has nothing to do with quality, it's because: (a) they know others use it, (b) they know about it, (c) it's easy to get and (d) it does what they (think) they want.
You need titles on shelves. Preferably games titles, as those sell more than office suites and other "big" applications. You only need one word processor, but most games-players have more than one game.
NWN, Quake, et al, are all great in that people are learning what it takes to get these games onto Linux. The skills are valuable. But that's not enough. The day Linux titles are stocked by corner stores, video stores (they rent computer games), Wal-Mart and all the other major outlets, then Linux will become a mainstream OS and (in turn) more profitable for companies to write for.
As of right now, Linux looks destined to dominate t
It's a small world and it smells funny; I'd buy another if it wasn't for the money; Take back what I paid (SoM)
Bioware got a lot of press around these parts for their promise of concurrent Linux and MacOS releases. They screwed up. Badly. Not only did they miss a concurrent release... but they've missed it by over a year (considering the MacOS isn't 1.0 yet and the caveats with the Linux version).
It is also a valid point that they got further delayed by technology they didn't own. Borland, Bink, and InstallSheild didn't help. But then, Bioware is supposed to be a professional outfit. Where was the process that ensured the technology being used would be cross platform?
Bioware's savings grace is that they've slogged through the experience and are finally delivering... more or less. It seems they are trying to make good, despite obvious inexperience in doing this kind of thing. Maybe they've learned enough to make the next time (and I hope there is a next time) go smoother. After all, other game houses have managed to pull this off.
The Bioware guys seem to be honest enough to admit to their mistakes and take the criticism. And they deserve that criticism. Keep in mind that they are selling commercial software. If their Windows release had the same issues as the Linux version, they'd get the same criticism and more. You wouldn't have people saying "we should all buy this despite how rough it is... after all, they could have just made a version for the PS2 and ignored Windows."
Having said all that - there is that saving's grace. Its a good game. They're trying. And they're doing a decent enough job at delivering. I'll be buying my copy today after work. I'll even buy the expansion set if its available.
But I'll still point out when and where they screwed up. As well as where they succeeded.
Nobody is above contructive criticism.
Now come ON!
Windows users have a fair point that not many games are released for Linux because the market is less than 5% of the Windows market.
You can't seriously tell us you expect them to support about 5% of the Linux market.
If you have an Alpha linux box, it's not so you can play games on it. It's because you're serious about what you're doing. And if you are good at what you're so serious about doing, you can afford to buy a cheap-as-buscuits x86 system.
But email them and complain, by all means. Maybe you can ask them if it will run on the latest $10,000 professional GPU, and if they can write support for those lasergun things you point at the screen. Those are cool. Oh, Oh, Oh, and force feedback. Gotta have force feeeeeeeeedbaaaaaack!
There is a petition to port Half Life 2 to Linux on
riblet that would be given to Valve. They have about 3000 confirmed entries by now. This is a good way to show how much interest there is to port games to Linux.
An installer for a Linux product!
Ben
Work Safe Porn
The linux client has been on their page for months now, at least I've been playing it for months on my linux box. So it's not like the game is "just out" on linux. (ps. is uses SDL and OpenGL if you're wondering).
The thing this article talks about is that NWN has an actual installation program, so you don't have to install it under Windows then copy it to your Linux box.
It's big news to people who don't have some Windows machine they can borrow. Most of us have a neighbor or girlfriend with one, so it's not a terrible thing.
Besides, PLEASE, how hard can it be to write an INSTALL program?
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
I *knew* it was no coincidence I got laid last night ;-)
SB
It's old. The more humans I meet, the more I like my cats. At least they are honest.